Women’s field hockey pool play is beginning to heat up in Rio. The matchups are only getting more intense as teams continue to fight for medal contention.
The biggest shock of the tournament so far has been Australia’s down fall. The No. 3 world-ranked team is sitting at the bottom of Pool B having not won a single game yet. They have been stunned by Great Britain and the United States, who are both undefeated despite not coming into Rio as medal favorites.
On Wednesday, both teams have matchups where they will compete to stay undefeated. Here is a preview of what is to come for the top must-see games of the day.
Great Britain vs. Argentina
Great Britain comes into this game in first place in Pool B. It’s been an all-around team effort for Team GB to take down its first two opponents, most notably Australia. Beating Argentina would be another upset for them to add to the list during this Olympic tournament.
Despite losing to the U.S. in the first game of pool play, Argentina came back swinging against Japan behind a dominating performance from Maria Barrionuevo. Barrionuevo can be lethal on penalty corner attempts, something that Great Britain will certainly try to limit in this match.
USA vs. Japan
Team USA also looks to stay perfect against fifth place Japan. The last time these two teams met was back in 2015 where the U.S. won three of the four games played against them in a series.
The U.S. have established itself as a dominant force already beating Argentina and Australia. Goalkeeper Jackie Briggs has been key in the cage, but what the U.S. showed in its last game is that they are being creative with how they look to score. The clever play set up on Michelle Vittese’s penalty goal gave them the lead over Australia.
Japan has struggled in its first two games. The Cherry Blossoms tied with India in the first game but then took a tough 4-0 loss to Argentina. Team captain Miyuki Nakagawa will look to get her team back on track, but Team USA seems to have a significant advantage in the matchup.
Stream these two matchups and all the rest of the action right here on NBCOlympics.com.